New York Assembly Bill A01957

New York 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 1/14/25
• Refer: 1/14/25
• Refer: 1/7/26

Caption

Relates to establishing the offense of false pretense.

Summary

This bill, titled the "e-impersonation prevention act," would create a new crime in the Penal Law called "false pretense." A person would commit this offense if they knowingly and without consent impersonate another person through an internet website or other electronic means for the purpose of harming, intimidating, threatening, or defrauding that person. The bill defines a credible impersonation as one that a reasonable person would believe is the real person, and it specifically includes accessing another person’s email account or social networking profile in another person’s name. The offense would be classified as a class D felony, making serious online impersonation conduct punishable under New York criminal law. The bill is aimed at conduct commonly associated with cyber abuse, identity misuse, and digital harassment, and it would add a new section 190.22 to the Penal Law. If enacted, it would take effect on November 1 following enactment.

Impact

The bill would amend New York’s Penal Law by adding a new felony offense for electronic impersonation with harmful, threatening, intimidating, or fraudulent intent. It would expand criminal liability to cover conduct carried out through websites, email accounts, and social media profiles, and would give prosecutors a specific charge to use in cases of online identity misuse and cyberharassment. The bill would not create a civil remedy; its effect is to define and punish a new criminal offense and thereby supplement existing fraud, harassment, and identity-related statutes.

Sentiment

Based on the bill text and the absence of recorded committee debate or votes, the measure appears to be framed as a public-safety and anti-harassment proposal with an emphasis on protecting people from online impersonation. The sponsor’s framing suggests support for stronger tools against digital abuse and fraud. Because there are no transcripts or vote records provided, there is no documented opposition or formal sentiment from committee members in the available materials.

Contention

The main policy issue is how broadly the new offense should reach. Supporters are likely to view the bill as necessary to address harmful online impersonation, especially on social media and email, while potential critics may worry about overlap with existing crimes, the scope of what counts as a "credible" impersonation, and whether the law could be applied too broadly to online speech or parody. Another possible point of contention is the felony classification, since a class D felony is a significant penalty for conduct that may range from fraud to harassment.